What these Hands Can't Hold
by Allen Bedillion Trahurn
Summary: A Witch hunt ends with the discovery of a young boy named Geo, the mysterious Weapon called the Vault Breakers. He joins Shibusen in an attempt to find his purpose in life, but the machinations of fate may make things more difficult than he could have imagined.


**What these Hands Can't Hold**

A.B.T.

"Stay on your toes," the Meister said to her Weapon, a sleek katana.

"I should be the one telling you that," chuckled the Weapon as they traversed the halls of this building. It was some sort of underground test facility, and they were there for one purpose and one purpose alone: to fight the Witch that had made its lair there. Very little was known about the Witch, but all their sources pointed to this place. As of yet, however, they had seen no sign of a Witch.

"Hey, I think there's someone in here," the Meister said quietly as they passed by a small cell. Inside sat a boy, no older than fifteen, with shackles around his wrists and ankles. He had short blonde hair that reached down to his shoulders and was matted in clumps. The shirt he wore, a torn up white tee-shirt, was bloodied in places and his black denim shorts were just as ragged. He wore no shoes, and his head was down, hiding his face from view.

"Oh my god, are you all right?" she exclaimed, receiving no answer. With a quick motion the lock on the cell door was broken (cut in half) and she rushed in, kneeling down and grabbing his shoulder.

"Hey…" she said, shaking him lightly. The boy stirred an looked up, and both the Meister and her Weapon gasped at what they saw. The boy's left eye was surrounded in jagged looking scars, and instead of an eye identical to the dark blue right eye, there was a metal orb with a pupil that looked like a red camera lens. It adjusted before the boy's head fell back down, unconscious.

_Much Later…_

"You say they found what in the Witches Lair?" asked Lord Death, formerly Death the Kid (and still this to his close friends), his amber eyes flashing with curiosity. He wasn't wearing his mask today. The man he was speaking to was one of the oldest teachers Shibusen, or the Death Weapon Meister Academy. He wore a white lab coat covered in stitching, the same kind of which one could easily see from his dark green sweatshirt he wore underneath the coat, as well as the black slacks. One could even see stitching going across his face. His eyes were calm and almost bored looking, and with one hand he took a long drag from a cigarette while he turned the giant screw in his head with the other until there was a resounding click through the Death Room.

"They found a young boy. A Weapon from the looks of him…although…"

"Although?"

"Well…maybe it would be best if you saw for yourself. I told the pair of students that found him to bring him in, so they should be here shortly," the man, Professor Frank N. Stein, said. Then, as if on cue, three teenagers came walking down the hall of guillotines that led to the Death Room, the Weapon and Meister keeping the other steady as they walked. Soul Eater Evans, who had been standing next to the chair Lord Death was sitting in, raised an eyebrow over his blood red eyes. He wore a black and red pinstriped suit and was, at this point in time, Lord Death's primary Death Scythe. With a quick, subtle movement the Weapon leaned over to the Shinigami.

"Do you think we can trust him? Look what happened with the other two," he said, thinking back to an incident that had occurred a few weeks ago. Lord Death merely shook his head.

"This boy looks like a victim, not an enemy," he replied, and indeed this seemed true. The boy had not been given a chance to be cleaned up before he was brought here.

"Go ahead," said Stein, taking another drag off his cigarette, "tell him what happened.

"Yes sir," said the Meister, "we went to fight the Witch that was rumored to be at the Test Facility underneath Paris, France."

"And? Was there a Witch?" Lord Death asked.

"No sir, not that we found. The whole facility was expansive, but we could find no trace of the Witch there. But we did find him," she answered, nodding toward the boy when she mentioned him, "He looked like he had been tortured and experimented on, so we decided to make him our primary objective." The girl went silent then, moving the black hair that had fallen into her face as she spoke. Her Weapon buried his hands in his pockets after running them over his bald head nervously. He was nervous, and it was easy to see. Lord Death looked up in thought for a few moments before closing his eyes and nodding.

"Hm. Very well. Consider your mission a success. Is there anything else you would like to report?"

"No sir, that was all."

"Then you are free to go," Lord Death said, and the pair obliged. When they were gone and out of earshot, Lord Death turned his attention to the boy, who was standing limply with his head down.

"What is your name?" the Shinigami asked.

"Geo," the boy answered, voice dull and lifeless, his body unmoving.

"Is it true that you are a Weapon?" continued Lord Death, eyes boring into the boy before him. Still Geo didn't move.

"I didn't used to be…" the boy answered. Lord Death was confused.

"Most Weapons are born that way. What do you mean you didn't used to be?" asked Soul, his voice more harsh than he had intended. At this the boy moved slowly, raising his head to look at them. If they were surprised at his mechanical eye, they didn't show it.

"Well…I don't remember much before, but the Witch those two were looking for…he turned me into a Weapon."

"He?"

"Yes…he kept calling himself Gregori, the Master Engineer," replied Geo in his lifeless, matter-of-fact tone. His gaze was unwavering on the Shinigami, who returned it with his own. After a few moments of silence, Geo let his head fall again.

"Hmph, never heard of him," commented Soul, crossing his arms, "have you Professor?"

"No," said the older man, flicking the remainder of his cigarette away, "but that's no matter anyway. There are plenty of Witches we've never heard of, so it's only natural if we find one we've never heard of. Besides, I see this as a new opportunity; with this boy, we can learn more about this itch and maybe we can track him down take him out."

"That is what I was thinking as well, Professor Stein," said Lord Death, standing and walking down to join them. He was wearing his normal jagged-yet-somehow-symmetrical cloak that he had received from his father before taking his place.

"However," he said, standing before them and now speaking directly to Geo, "I can't force you to do anything you don't want to. I can't even force you to stay here. All I can do is give you an offer. Whether or not you take it is up to you."

"Okay…" said Geo, looking up at the Death God. There was no fear or awe in his eyes, but Lord Death could see a kind of sadness in them.

"Would you like to stay here and become a student?" he asked simply, to which Geo was silent. Lord Death smiled at him.

"I don't need an answer now. Go with Stein and take a tour. Learn what Shibusen is about, and if it's right for you." Geo nodded and turned, following the already walking Stein. Soul walked up behind his old friend, looking after the boy.

"Reminds you of Crona, huh?"

"Kind of."

"Think we can trust him?"

"Only time will tell. Either way, something tells me if we want to catch Gregori we'll need him."

_Meanwhile…_

Stein and Geo walked in a sort of careful silence through the halls of Shibusen. Every now and again Stein would mention something about a classroom or part of the building, but most of the time he merely walked while Geo flicked his eyes around, taking in all the information he could. Any students they encountered tended to give him a wide berth, whispering to one another about him, he was sure. He didn't like it, and he felt the energy build in his arms, but he held it back. Mostly because of the gaze of the man towering above him.

"Problem?" he asked.

"I don't know…they think I'm strange," answered Geo, his tone still lifeless.

"Well you are," answered Stein simply, and Geo glared at him before he continued, "everyone that comes here is, in some way, a little strange. Outcast from normal society by some thing or another. Most of the time, Weapons and Meisters are set apart because of what they can do. I think that's part of the reason the DWMA was built, other than to fight Kishins." As he was talking, Geo an Stein had worked their way down a few levels, and were now standing by the door of a small room. The walls were stone and bare, and there was little else but a bed and a desk. There were no windows.

"Anyway, this is where you will be staying for tonight. Feel free to look around the academy and even look around the city. Or leave, if you really want to. But if you need anything ask for Maka Albarn or Kim, the nurse. I'm sure they would both be willing to help you."

"But…"

"No buts. You're on your own for now. If you'll excuse me," Stein interrupted, and then he was gone, walking down the hall and turning out of sight. Geo stood, helpless all of a sudden, alone in the hall. Something told him to run; to get away, to escape this place. But, for some reason, he didn't. He merely stood, looking after the man that was probably already three stories away. With a sigh, he stepped into the room he was provided, letting the doo close behind him as he wondered what the future was going to hold for him.

**Hello. First and foremost I would like to apologize for adding yet another story to the already somewhat staggering amount of unfinished works. I just couldn't help it, this story popped into my head and I just had to run with it. Please read, review, be merry.**


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